THE SECOND MAN
BY TODD SMITH (ASST. PASTOR)

To say that no one remembers second place is all too often true. Ask someone to name all of the U.S. presidents, and many will. Ask them to name all the vice presidents who served under these men, and few, if any, can do so. Does this lessen the importance of these men? Could the President do his job as well without these men? I think not. Then, to say that as an assistant you are only important if others recognize you as important is untrue. Being the “second” man is all too often a place of obscurity. You find yourself standing in the shadow of another person. From the congregation to fellow ministers, no one, except the pastor, really knows your worth, and although man may not remember second place, you can rest assured that God does.

For more than 12 years now, I have been an assistant in one capacity or another. I have experienced complete fulfillment in my ministry, and I believe that you can also.

1. Don’t Be Power Hungry. Although it may be a preconceived notion by most, there is no law that says you must be a pastor in order to minister effectively. Yes, there is a need for more churches and pastors, yet at the same time, as God sends revival and churches grow, good assistants will be needed to keep this harvest of souls.

So, don’t rush God. If you do, you may find yourself in the worst of all places … out of His Will.

2. Be Faithful and Loyal (at all costs). If asked, most pastors would probably consider this the most important of all qualities in an
assistant. Never contradict or second guess your pastor. Remember the law of the harvest: You reap what you sow.

3. Serve Well. The words of Christ we all want to have recited over us are “well done, thou good and faithful SERVANT ” Notice how the words of Christ are not “good and faithful pastor” or “evangelist,” but “SERVANT’ Whether it be as pastor or as an assistant, we all must serve, so serve well.

One might think he has arrived only after being voted in as pastor, having now accomplished the “ultimate.” But men such as Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, and many others found the ultimate, not in being given a title, but in being called a servant.

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THE ABOVE MATERIAL WAS TAKEN FROM AND PUBLISHED BY THE PRINCE OF PEACE NEWSLETTER, SPRING, 1996.

THIS MATERIAL IS COPYRIGHTED AND MAY BE USED FOR STUDY & RESEARCH PURPOSES ONLY.